Door-operating mechanism.



J. G. B'OWE DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION TILED MAR. 10. 1908.

Patented Nov. 24, 1908.

Maw

"UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JEROME G. BOWER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO PRESSED STEEL CAR COMPANY, OF PITISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

DOOR-OPERATING MECHAN ISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 24, 1908.

Application flied March 10, 1968. Serial No. 42'0,149.-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JEROME G. Bownn, a citizen of the United States, and'resident of Chicago, Cook county, Illinois, have i11vent ed certain new and useful Improvements in Door-Operating Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and accurate description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts, and in which:

Figure l is a sectional end elevation of a portion of .a car end showing the subject of the invention, Fig. 2 is a side view of the same, Fig. 3 is a detail plan of the lever socket, Fig. 4: is a detail sectional view on the line H, Fig. 1, showing the stop for the operatingpawl and, in dotted lines, the position to which the pawl is moved in reversing the same, and Fig. 5 is a detail sec tion through the slotted casting showing the dog plate guide projection. a

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved operating device for a rotatable shaft forming a part of the door operating mechanism. In general terms such a device consists of a ratchet wheel keyed to the shaft and a bell crank carrying a pawl for driving said ratchet in either direction, said bell crank having formed therein a suitable socket for an operating lever such as a crowbar, stake or other similar bar. In the mechanism there is also a dog for preventing backward movement on the ratchet during the door-closing operation ment of the shaft and a safety cam located for preventing automatic displacement of said dog.

Another object of the present invention is to provide improvements in the details of the construction of the aforesaid mechanism.

Although not shown in the drawings, it to be understood that the shaft operated by the hereinbefore described device is connectcar doors, such, for instance. as shown and described in patent granted to Lindstrom &

Streib, No. 791,348, dated May 30th, 1905, 1

and entitled Car Door Mechanism, which a bodily movable rotatable shaft is employed for closing the doors and supportwhen the weight of the doors induces move ed in any suitable manner with one or more thereto a twoway ratchet 4 and having,

loosely mounted thereon a bell crank 5. Bell crank 5 carries on one arm a projecting lug or pivot 5 on which is loosely mounted an offset pawl 6 held in place by a cotter pin 7 passing through a perforation in the lug or pivot 5. Lug or pivot 5* is provided with an inclined upper surface at 5.

5 is a pawl safety stop projecting slightly over the lug or pivot 5 and also formed integral with bell crank 5. 5 is a socket formed in the other arm of bell crank 5 of suitable size and shape to receive a crowbar, stake or other similar bar or handle. The socket 5 tapers at its bottom and extends entirely through the arm so that the arm is tubular or perforated.

S is a dog pivotally mounted on a plate 9 and adapted to engage with the two-way ratchet i. Plate 9 is carried by and adapted to travel with shaft and 10 is a cam safety latch engaging the dog 8 to prevent auto matic displacement of dog 8,such as by jarring of the car in transit.

9 is a stop or rest integral with plate 9 for supporting latch 10 in disengaged positlon.

9 is a stop integral with plate 9 for preventing dog 8 from dropping below the horizontal when in disengaged position. Plate 9 preferably formed of a casting and is provided with an inwardly extending proection 9 which travels in the slot in casting 2 and prevents plate 9 from dropping below horizontal position.

The advantages of the construction described are that any crowbar, stake or other bar lying about the railway yards, where the doors are to be operated, may be inserted ii! the socket 5 and the shaft thus operated without necessity of carrying a lever attached to or integral with the bell crank 5. i

whereupon they dropped down toward the tracks, catching the ties and doing considerable damage not only to the lever but to the roadbed. This is especially the case when one of these levers is formed of a metal bar, as is frequently the case.

A further advantage of the structure described is that the pawl carried by the bell crank 5, during a runaway movement of the shaft during the opening of the doors is prevented from flying up and over to its door-closing position, causing the lever to be jerked from the hands of the operator. This has been known to happen and the operator to be seriously injured. Such an automatic movement of the pawl at such a time would be caused by rebounding of the pawl from the teeth. of the ratchet. The inclined surface 5 on lug 5 allows tilting of the pawl, shown in Fig. whereupon by reason of its offset the pawl may be turned beyond the stop 5 and thus-traversed.

Another advantage of the structure described isthat the plate 9 is held against rotation about the shaft- 3 by an inward projection 99 in engagementwith the slot, so that the dog 8 operates effectively against the teeth of the ratchet at.

By mounting a bell crank on shaft 3 to drive same, a much greater range of positions of the operating handle in which the mechanism may be started with pawl held in engagement by gravity, so that the operating handle may be conveniently operated from the ground or from the end sill without necessitating the holding of pawl 6 by hand in engagement at the start of the stroke.

This is because with a convenient position of the operating handle at the start of any operative stroke the pawl arm of hell crank 5 occupies a position within a range of 90 degrees above the horizontal in which position the pawl 6 must hang to either one side or other of the vertical, except. when the pawl arm is on the vertical, hence pawl 6 is held in contact by gravity. If during an operative stroke the pawl arm is moved beyond the range of 90 degrees above the horizontal, the pawl 6 is held in engagement by contact with the tooth on ratchet st.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what I claim as new therein and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a door operating mechanism, a shaft, a bell crank having a lever socket formed therein loosely mounted on said shaft and ceases a connection between said bell crank and shaft for turning the latter.

2. In a door operating mechanism, a shaft and a cast metal lever having a tapered aperture extending through one arm at rightangle thereto, carried by said shaft for turning the 3. in a door operating mechanism, a shaft and a metal lever mounted on said shaft having a handle socket formed therein and a tapered aperture at. the base of said socket.

l. In a door operating mechanism, a ratchet, alever, a pawl carried by the lever for operating the ratchet and a stop'formed on the lever integral therewith for preventing displacement of the pawl.

5. In a door operating mechanism, a twoway ratchet, a lover, a lug on the lever having an inclined face, a awl carried-by the lug and a pawl stop pro ecting over the lu 6. In a door operating mechanism, a twoway ratchet, a lever, a lug on the lever having an inclined face, an odset pawl carried by the lug and a pawl stop projecting over the lug.

7. in a door operating mechanism, a shaft, a ratchet for driving said shaft, a lever having a handle socket formed in one arm and a pawl carried by the other arm of said lever for driving said ratchet.

8. In a door operating mechanism, a shaft,

a ratchet for driving said shaft, a lever of cast metal having a cylindrical handle socket in one and tapered pawl lug or pivot on its other arm, anda pawl safety stop integral with and projecting therefrom above said lug or pivot in combination with the ofiset pawl carried by said lug or pivot.

9. In a door operating mechanism, a slotted plate, a shaft movable bodily through the slot in said plate, a ratchet carried by said shaft, a dog frame carried by said shaft projecting into the slot in said plate to prevent rotation about said shaft and a dog carried by said frame.

10. In a door operating mechanism, a slotted plate, a shaft movable bodily through the slot in said plate, a ratchet carried by said shaft, a dog frame carried by said shaft projecting into the slot in said plate to prevent rotation about said shaft and a dog and safety dog latch carried by said frame.

11. In a door 0 aerating mechanism, a'slotted plate, a shaft movable bodily through the slot in said plate, a ratchet carried by said" shaft, a dog frame carried by said shaft projecting into the slot in said plate to prevent rotation abcut'said shaft and a dog and cam safety dog latch carried by said frame.-

12. In a door operating mechanism, a slotted casting, a shaft movable bodily through the slot in said casting, aratchet carried by sa d shaft, :1 cast metal plate carried by said shaft and having an offset projecting?) into The foregoing specification signed at Mcthe slotin said casting, a dog carried y tlle Kees Rocks, Allegheny county,- Pennsylplate and adapted to engage the ratchet, a Vania, this 4th day of March, 1908.

cast metal lever having a handle'socket JEROME G. BOWER. 5 formed in one arm carried bysaid shaft Witnesses:

and. a pawl carried by the other arm of said H. B. FISHER,

lever. l I T. J. JONES. 

